NASC’S Charitable Donations Boosted by Member Generosity

Donations made by the NASC to two deserving charities at its 2018 Ball & Awards evening have been tripled – thanks largely to the generosity of members.

NASC President and TRAD Group CEO Des Moore presented the Lighthouse Construction Industry Charity and Demelza Hospice Care for Children with cheques for £10,000 each as part of the black tie event held at the Sheraton Grand Hotel & Spa, Edinburgh, last month.

He then urged members to help raise a further £5,000 for each charity through a five-lot charity auction.

This fundraising goal was surpassed several times over during the course of dinner, with guests digging deep with their bids, helping to push the total raised well past each lot’s reserve prices. These efforts were supported by a number of members’ substantial standalone donations, who approached either Des Moore or the Ball toastmaster to submit financial pledges.

Combined with the original £10,000 sum – and boosted by a £2,300 donation by CISRS – the NASC was delighted to reach a total fundraising figure of £60,000, which was split equally between each charity.

The NASC presented each charity with their cheques earlier this month.

Bill Hill, CEO of the Lighthouse Construction Industry Charity, said: “We are absolutely delighted to have received this huge donation from the NASC members. We urgently need funding to sustain our helpline services and develop our Building Mental Health programme and this money will go a long way towards making a difference to our construction families in crisis.

“Thank you again to all the NASC members who were so very generous.”

Ryan Campbell, CEO of Demelza Children’s Hospice Care for Children, added: “This donation and the overwhelming support we have received from the NASC and the scaffolding community is so much appreciated. This is a great boost to the care we are able to offer children with terminal conditions and their families.”

Robin James, NASC Managing Director, said: “The money raised for these charities, predominantly from NASC members, will be one of the enduring memories of the 2018 Ball & Awards. The way members embraced the opportunity to support these two deserving charities both at the event and in the following days was great to see.

“I’d like to thank each and every member that helped boost the total donated for their efforts. I’d also like to thank all of the Ball & Awards sponsors for their association with the event. Without their backing we would not have been able to stage such a prestigious evening in the first place.”

CISRS OSTS Continues to Thrive in Oman

A training facility run in partnership by Safety and Access and Knowledge Gird in Oman has passed its first CISRS Overseas Scaffolder Training Scheme (OSTS) annual audit.

A steady stream of Scaffolders, Inspectors and Supervisors have successfully completed OSTS programmes at the purpose-built centre since it opened in January this year.

Courses have taken place every month this year – undertaken by close to 200 operatives in total – and a number of courses set for 2019 are already fully booked.

The bulk of the training delivered to date has been Level 1 Scaffolder plus Basic Inspection and Scaffolding Supervisors courses, however the centre in now running Level 2 Scaffolder courses and is hoping to increase its CISRS OSTS delivery to include Level 3, CPD and Systems training in Cuplok.

CISRS Scheme Manager Dave Mosley, who carried out the audit, said: “Safety and Access and Knowledge Grid have done a great job with the facility here as only 18 months ago this building was an empty shell. The newly refurbished practical area, classrooms, canteen and welfare facilities provide an excellent environment for training.

“Oman has really embraced the CISRS Overseas Scaffolders Training Scheme with three centres now operating within the region, all of which are proving very successful.”

Rick Statham, Joint Managing Director of Safety and Access, said: “We are really pleased with the skills centre set up, the way that Knowledge Grid has developed their training delivery and expanded their client base. We look forward to supporting all of our partners further to promote the CISRS OSTS scheme within Oman and throughout the region.”

NASC’s Nominated Charities Big Winners at 2018 Awards & Ball

NASC members converged on Edinburgh on Friday evening for the 2018 Awards & Ball.

The sell-out black tie event, held at the Sheraton Grand Hotel & Spa, saw the 400+ guests treated to champagne and canapés upon arrival, followed by a fine-dining three-course meal and a wealth of top-class after-dinner entertainers.

The newly-expanded NASC Awards ceremony – hosted by acclaimed TV presenter and former international gymnast Gabby Logan – formed the centrepiece of the evening, with winners of seven categories revealed.

GKR Scaffolding Ltd emerged as the night’s big winners, taking home both the Innovation and Health & Safety (67+ Employees) awards as well a runner-up in the Project of the Year (£5 million + turnover) category, which was won by PHD Modular Access.

The tone was set for the evening by electronic string quartet Escala, with the Britain’s Got Talent finalists opening and closing the awards ceremony.

Actress, comedian, impressionist and singer Debra Stephenson served as the evening’s headline act, delivering a set filled with her impersonations of celebrities such as Davina McCall, Theresa May, Jo Brand and even Donald Trump.

Despite the impressive line-up and prestigious awards ceremony, the highlight of the night was inarguably the generous attendees, who helped raise more than £50,000 for charity, which will be split between the Lighthouse Club and Demelza Hospice Care for Children.

Robin James, NASC Managing Director, said: “It was a fantastic evening. The planned elements of the evening were incredibly well-received, from the keenly contested awards to the night’s entertainment.

“What was more pleasing for me was the element outside of our control; the charity auction. The five lots drew bids far exceeding their reserve prices, and this total was boosted further by a number of members who donated significant sums of money on the night.

“We could not possibly have expected to raise such a large amount for the two nominated charities and would like to thank the members for their generosity.”

Light up Your Night

Bill Hill, CEO of the Lighthouse Club, said: “It was a magnificent event and I thoroughly enjoyed the evening. I cannot believe how generous the membership and their guests were in raising such an incredible amount on the evening.

“100% of this donation will go towards supporting our Construction Industry Helpline and supporting our construction workforce and their families in crisis.”

Ryan Campbell, CEO of Demelza Hospice Care for Children, added: “We were overwhelmed by the kindness of NASC members. To receive a donation of more than £25,000 was completely unexpected.

“It is only through donations such as this that we are able us to continue to provide vital services and support to life-limited children and their families.”

The 2019 Awards & Ball will take place at the Celtic Manor Resort, Newport. Further details will be announced in due course.

NASC 2018 Ball & Awards – Charitable Donations

I am delighted to inform you of charitable donations made by the NASC and its members at the NASC Ball & Awards in Edinburgh on Friday evening.

NASC President and TRAD Group CEO Des Moore presented cheques of £10,000 to both the Lighthouse Club and Demelza Hospice Care for Children before the awards ceremony began.

A further £19,155 was raised through a charity auction, with the winning bids submitted by generous members far exceeding the reserve figures set for the five lots.

Seven substantial standalone donations from member companies on the night added a further £13,722 to the amount raised for these two deserving charities – bringing the total cash raised to £52,877.

This means that both charities currently stand to receive £26,438.50 to help them continue the vital work they undertake; the Lighthouse Club in providing financial and emotional support to the construction community and their families, and Demelza in the broad range of support they give to children with life-limiting illnesses and their families.

Over the course of the weekend, several members have contacted us to ask if they can make additional donations to these charities through the NASC. We are more than happy to facilitate this and would be thrilled if we can take the amount raised for each charity past the £30,000 figure.

To help us do so, anyone wishing to make a donation is asked to email Sarah Phillips, NASC Finance Manager & Company Secretary, with their name, contact details and sum to donate.

‘Step Change’ for NASC in 2018

The NASC has taken a step change in terms of outputs and activities undertaken in 2018, according to Robin James, Managing Director.

Speaking at the NASC’s AGM in Edinburgh on Friday 23 November, Mr James said the confederation has raised the bar in a number of areas and paid tribute to the hard work of NASC members, its Committees, Officers & Directors and President for playing their part in driving the standards synonymous with the NASC even higher.

“Since the last NASC AGM in London, in November 2017, we’ve come a long way,” he said. “Under the Presidency of Des Moore, TRAD Group CEO, there has been a ‘step change’ in the organisation.

“At the NASC AGM twelve months ago Des set out his presidential objectives. Great strides have already been made. This includes greater numbers of NASC presentations and events, greater emphasis on promoting mentoring, diversity and wellbeing with the membership and greater involvement of women on NASC committees and working groups.

“Speaking of which, the NASC standing committees continue to progress significant bodies of work, and I’d like to thank them for their efforts.

“2018 has been a great year for the NASC. We believe we have plans in place to ensure 2019 is even better and would urge greater involvement and engagement by members at NASC regional meetings and beyond.”

Other speakers at the NASC AGM, held at the Sheraton Grand Hotel & Spa, included Des Moore, NASC President and TRAD Group CEO and Gerry Cooper, NASC President 2010-2011, who gave an overview of entries shortlisted for the NASC 2018 Awards, which were due to be held at the same venue later that night.

TV presenter and former international gymnast Gabby Logan gave the keynote speech.

Des Moore said: “The AGM was incredibly well attended by our members, which demonstrates how much they value membership.

“It was a great opportunity to take stock of what the NASC has achieved in the past year and from a personal point of view, how much progress we have made against the four objectives I announced at the beginning of my tenure as President.

“I am immensely proud of our successes in 2018 and believe we’re on the right track to delivering even greater results in the year ahead.”

NASC and CISRS Take Speaking Slots at Major Scaffolding Conference in China

The NASC and CISRS were represented at a major, two-day scaffolding conference in China.

The Construction Material Rental Contractor Association (CMRA) event, held in Tianjin, drew more than 600 delegates from across the country.

David Mosley, NASC Director and CISRS Scheme Manager, was invited to attend as a keynote speaker. He gave a presentation on the role of the NASC in establishing best practice and producing guidance not only for its members but the industry as a whole.

He also gave an overview of the UK CISRS scheme and CISRS Overseas Scaffolder Training Scheme (OSTS) and explained how having a regulated industry and a recognised training scheme had made the UK scaffolding sector a much safer place.

After the presentation, David took part in a panel discussion aimed at exploring what advice the UK representatives could give to help improve the scaffolding sector in China.

The pair also gave an additional presentation to more than 60 health and safety representatives from the China State Construction Engineering Corporation, one of the largest construction companies in the world. Delegates said they were impressed with CISRS OSTS would be looking to send some of their workforce on Inspection and Supervisory Training courses.

Yu Naiqiu, CMRA President, said: “We would like to thank our guests form the UK for sharing some of the good practice relating to safety and training with us, it was very informative and a really positive experience.”

Howard Liu, Chief Director of WenMA formwork and Shoring, added: “Our members were really pleased that David Mosley and Andy Sharp could attend the annual conference.

“We were very impressed with the quality of the guidance that NASC and CISRS produces and I think it is excellent that it can be downloaded for free. We are sure our members will find it very useful.”

Hard copies will soon be available for purchase from the NASC online shop here. They are available for free download now via the same link.

Each PG note details purchasing best practice and outlines the standards to which customers should check that products they are sourcing are manufactured and tested to. This includes what to look for, what relevant information they should request and what a test certificate looks like.

The PG notes are intended to be used in tandem with the NASC’s Code of Practice (CoP) compliant product list, which corresponds with the six PG product categories. All products on this list have been subjected to UKAS accredited independent laboratory testing over and above the testing and third-party approval standards of the manufacturer and supplier.

Robin James, NASC Managing Director, said: “Currently, as matters stand, there is no authority or organisation in the UK that licences or approves scaffolding and access equipment. And although, for example, system scaffolding, couplers and scaffold tube do have their own set of BS EN standards to which they should be manufactured, there is no independent UK third party approval scheme in place to audit or verify against and check that such products are being correctly manufactured and comply with these standards.

“Clearly this is not an ideal situation in an industry that operates at height. It is in everyone’s interests that the products we purchase and use daily fall under some form of independent external scrutiny and third-party minimum standards.

“Through the publication of the new PG notes, contractors can ensure the products they hire or buy are safe and compliant to BS EN standards. This can either by achieved by selecting equipment on the NASC’s COP compliant product list, which includes products that have successfully passed rigorous independent testing or by carrying out your own checks on products not on the list using the guidance and tips included in the PG documents.”

The NASC CoP compliant product list will be expanded as required. PST units are due to be added in January 2019. A corresponding PG note will follow shortly after.

WATA NVQ Portfolios Update

Since notification that West Anglian Training Association went into administration last month, CISRS has received may queries from those who had registered with them for their NVQ qualifications.

People who are in possession of VQ portfolios issued by WATA will need to re-register with another provider for them to take over the qualification. They will need to contact an alternative centre directly.

For those who have submitted portfolios to WATA, CISRS has managed to retrieve some candidates’ portfolios from the WATA offices. If you have submitted a VQ portfolio and not had this signed off, CISRS may have your portfolio.

If you are in this position, please can you email Laura Weekes and if we have it, we can return it to you. Candidates will need to re-register the VQ with another centre.

NOCN have kindly offered to waive the re-registration fee for candidates in this position and CISRS thanks them for this gesture.

Any enquiries about payments made to WATA can be made through the Administrators Mctear, Williams and Wood. They can be contacted by calling 0800 331 7417. Their website is here.

CISRS Instructor Conference Success

The latest scaffolder training news and updates were shared and discussed at the annual CISRS Instructor Conference.

More than 40 delegates based at CISRS centres across the UK attended the one-day event, held at NCC’s training facility in Bircham Newton, Norfolk.

The conference was chaired by David Mosley, CISRS Scheme Manager, who gave a presentation covering updates to Pt1, Pt2 and Advanced courses, CPD and systems scaffolding.

Tony Barry of NCC Midlands and Access and Scaffolding Industry Training Organisation (ASITO) committee member also delivered an update on Trailblazer, the standard, end point assessment and external qualification assessment.

Martin Coyd of Mace Group and Rev. Kevin Fear from CITB co-presented a session on Building Mental Health which included a tool box talk that can now be delivered by the instructors.

Martin, Operations Director – Health, Safety & Wellbeing, said: “Kevin and I were grateful for the opportunity to speak at the conference and given the platform to discuss the current mental health crisis and how the whole industry can work together with the Building Mental Health Framework to bring about change.

“If we all pull in the same direction, we can reach the everybody who works in construction and offer simple solutions and signpost people to existing sources of support. Together, we can make a real change.”

The conference also featured a breakout session where delegates provided their view on a range of topics including CISRS instructor qualification criteria, training centre capacity and training facility criteria.

Thomas Winters, Director at All Access Training, said: “As a new CISRS provider, this was my first Instructor conference and I really enjoyed it. It was good to get a chance to meet up with other providers for a meal and a few drinks the night before.

“The conference gave us the opportunity to put over our opinions directly to CISRS on what we think works and what we feel could be improved.”

NASC Launches 2019 Yearbook

The NASC is proud to launch its 2019 Yearbook – showcasing the latest confederation news and updates.

The Yearbook features a round-up of the achievements and plans of the various NASC committees, more than a dozen pages of project overviews submitted by NASC members as well as a comprehensive listing of full contracting NASC members.

Robin James, NASC Managing Director, said: “We are delighted to launch the NASC 2019 Yearbook. I’d like to thank all those members that submitted copy for inclusion – showcased on the project pages – and also those that took advertising spaces.

This year’s publication is packed with helpful information, reviews and updates on the work of the confederation, and includes reports from its standing committees including the new Current Affairs committee, which has already made a strong impression.

“Whilst looking back at activities undertaken throughout this year, the Yearbook also looks ahead to 2019. We have plans to host more presentations and events up and down the country next year with a view to further increasing the number of clients including NASC membership as a pre-requisite for their projects.

“Membership continues to grow, and we expect the 250 barrier to be breached in terms of number of scaffolding contractors in NASC full membership during early 2019.”

Des Moore, NASC President and CEO of TRAD Group, opens the Yearbook with his President’s Report, which takes stock of the successes of his first year in post and ahead to his ambitions for the year to come.

He said: “I feel that we have put many wheels in motion during my first year as President and have generated a great deal of momentum. It’s now about keeping this going in my second year to ensure all successes are fully maximised and platforms put in place to deliver long- as well as short-term benefits.

“Keeping this momentum going will require greater support and input from our membership and I encourage all members to get involved with NASC events and activities and to have their say on the future of the NASC.

“I believe the NASC should represent all members, regardless of size and location, and would welcome any input on how we can continue to raise standards.”

In addition to the 96 page printed version, an e-reader version of the NASC 2019 Yearbook is available to view here and via the NASC website ‘About’ page.